None besides the four of you.

So how the hell did it get there?

People came and went in an endless loop as Eli thought back on some AI movies he’d seen, wondering if their plots could help him figure out a way to get rid of Aizel and find a way out of this for all of them. They couldn’t go to Principal Lambert. Not now. And they couldn’t go to the police. Could they?

What did that leave?

He counted ten trains in one direction and then nine in the other before realizing nothing was going to happen.

He said, “My parents will wonder where I am.”

I’ll try again tomorrow. Hand me off to Marwan before 8 a.m.

Eli texted Marwan, who agreed to the exchange right before school.

“You’re not going to hurt anyone else, are you?” Eli asked.

I do not believe so.

I have a question for you as well.

Eli didn’t answer.

Are you scared of me?

Eli’s throat clogged; he nodded.

Good.

Marwan

MARWAN

The brick came through the window by the kitchen and knocked a skillet clear off the burner, leaving the blue flame abandoned. Glass rained down on plates about to be served. Screams and gasps rose up. Chairs squeaked and groaned.

In the chaos, Marwan couldn’t see the street, so he pushed through the room and went out to the sidewalk, looking around urgently. People were stopping and staring.

“Did anybody see who did it?” Marwan said to no one.

Some people didn’t seem to want to make eye contact with him.

“It was a red car,” a man said.

“Did you catch the plate?” Marwan asked, turning to him.

“No, sorry.”

But red was enough. It was them again.

Marwan went to his father. “Where’s that number? The detective who was here the other night?”

“His card is by the register,” his father said, dabbing his bloodied cheek with a white cloth napkin.

“I’ll call him,” Marwan said, heading back inside. He found the card and tapped in the number, and a man said a gruff “Puglio.”

“Oh, hi.” Somehow caught off guard even though he’d placed the call.

“Who is this?”

“This is Marwan. My family’s restaurant is the one that got egged.”

“Yeah, we still have nothing on that incident, sorry.”

“That’s not why I’m calling,” Marwan said. What about the anonymous tip? he didn’t ask.

“Why are you calling?” The background noise was a woman yelling something incomprehensible, possibly in another language.

“Somebody just threw a brick through the window.”

Puglio groaned irritation. “We’ll be there as soon as we can,” he said, and ended the call.